In anticipation of the new translation of the Roman Missal, OCP has chosen five new and four revised Mass settings for initial publication. We have worked closely with our composers and customers to develop parish-tested Mass settings you can choose with confidence.

Parish-tested. That’s promising. I often wonder how they did it in South Africa on the music front. Did they ignore the texts of the Mass ordinary and plug along with the old settings? Did some musicians adapt their own and others’ Mass settings? Even though we’ve all been told not to use the new texts, we do know that the pope allowed new texts to be used for WYD in Australia in ’08.

(I)t is Christ himself, as Head of the Mystical Body, who presides over our Sunday celebration and offers the Body’s praise and thanksgiving to God. For me it moves my soul to imagine that every time we celebrate Mass it is Christ the Savior stands there to pray with us, sing with us, proclaim the scripture with us, give thanks with us, and finally, share the meal of his own body and blood with us. The title Mass of Christ the Savior seemed most appropriate.

Anybody heard or seen the music for any of these settings? If you have, what do you think?

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About catholicsensibility

Todd lives in the Pacific Northwest, serving a Catholic parish as a lay minister.

Though I’m often chided as being a B. Hurd or Joncas shill, I would’ve expected nothing more than what is present in this “unveiling.” The blatant blurp of the revised setting page declaring OCP’s fealty to “top composers” says it all. It’s also no secret to friends and OCP that I’ve publicly regarded their stable of Ordinaries to be the weakest among the newsprint bunch. What’s the French for “the more things change, the more they stay the same?”

In South Africa the only things that have changed are the spoken people’s parts of the ordinary. Among most priests especially there’s just no enthusiasm for this new translation and the justifications behind it. In many parishes when we sing, we still use all the old settings and paraphrases of the Gloria and Creed – no surprise. Some parishes have simply ignored the new translation completely. Some parishes are using a hybrid translation, where priests use the old words for their solo parts, while the people use the new words.

For what it’s worth (re: Plainsong settings)–
I think it is important to note that there will be a requirement that all the publishers are to include the ICEL-commissioned vernacular plainsong settings of the Order of the Mass in worship publications.
These ICEL settings will supplement any other settings chosen for inclusion by the publishers.
-bari (at OCP)

That strikes me as, well, minimalist. Why not commission some of your own, too? Why just leave it to the ICEL versions? There has been a long under-served need for them (there are not musicians at every liturgy, especially during the week, but there is often a desire for settings that a presider and congregation can sing without musicians – which plainsong is perfectly suited to); publishers should be viewing this as an opportunity to empower congregations, not a burden.

I think I’m with Liam on this one, Bari. In fact, a nice plainsong setting with options for accompaniment might be an excellent complement to what you are producing.

That said, I got the idea from the web site that these nine Mass settings are just a start. Other older settings may still be revised by the composers, and certainly new settings will be composed and published in the years ahead.

Indeed, we received many, many, many more submissions, and we can’t do everything for everyone.
The whole situation is further complicated by the factor of the unknown date of recognitio and promulgation. It is, indeed, a waiting game.

I look forward to hearing these new mass settings. Hurd and Schutte have proven themselves time and again – Personally, I would like to see Celtic Mass fade away. It’s always played awkard and the assembly rarely knows what to do with it. Heritage Mass does fit well with this genre. I look forward to hearting the new Spangish setting as well as the new Mass from the younger composer (I forgot his name.

In our Diocese we were given one setting to learn. It is a chant like setting in a minor key.(no choice in the matter) The choir dislikes it and i’ve noticed that people in the pews do not seem interested in it. So i am writing my own setting in a major key and a bit more upbeat…So far so good.